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“I never really thought so because I had my dad. Of course, he was not nearly so kind after the incident. I had to do a lot of extra chores because things could have gone much differently. As you said, I’m fairly temperamental, and it was infinitely worse when I was young. He told me that I had to learn how to fight with words instead of actions, which got me into hacking. That’s a whole different kettle of fish. But the surprising thing was that the guy did a complete one-eighty afterward. He dumped his girlfriend and spent the rest of the school year trying to get me to date him.”

Phoenix looked down at her, then started laughing. “He wanted a woman who could dominate him, huh?’

Astrid laughed. “I think so. But he’d punched me in the head, so there was no chance I would ever say yes. His parents were so distraught that he was getting hung up on the weirdo with the dying dad, so they transferred him for the rest of high school.”

Phoenix shook his head. “I’ll bet you have a lot of stories about your past.”

“I really do.” She smiled up at him as the warmth continued to spread through her. “And I would love to share them with you.”

He tapped a finger on her chest. “You just don’t learn, do you?” Then, he pulled his hand away. “That’s probably enough for now.”

Disappointment moved through her, so Astrid sat up a bit. “It already feels a little tighter now that you aren’t touching me.”

“It’s still working its way through your system. Eventually, it’ll be expelled, and you’ll feel much better.”

Astrid reached up and took his hand. “You know what really baffles me?”

Phoenix looked down at their hands. “The fact that you seem to love being reckless?”

“No, it’s how comfortable I feel around you. I’ve never felt that way with people who weren’t related to me, probably because I haven’t tried to get close to anyone in a long time.”

“It’s very poor judgment on your part.”

“I think it’s because I can understand how isolated you feel. Sure, I had a couple of people in my corner when I was young, but I never had a real connection with people outside of my family. Perhaps because I had too much to do at home, or perhaps because I never felt like I belonged. Granted, I’m a shifter, and I didn’t belong.” She smiled.

Phoenix sat on the bed next to her. “I get what you are saying. And I’m sure that now that you know you can feel something with other people, you’ll be able to make those connections.”

Astrid slowly shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. I’m too temperamental. I belong in the shadows, hacking away at a computer and pouncing on my prey.” She smiled and bit down on her bottom lip.

Phoenix sighed. “You really refuse to listen. Is there no way I can convince you not to pursue any kind of relationship with me?”

Astrid moved forward a little, pulling her legs up to move closer to him. His eyes followed her movements. She picked up his hand and placed it back over her heart, and the warmth began to spread through her again. Leaning forward, she kept her eyes on him as she kissed the side of his mouth.

“Bad answer,” he murmured as he put his other hand under her chin. He tilted her head back a little, then kissed her. Astrid dropped his hand and wrapped her arms around his neck as she pressed her body against his. Phoenix’s hands were hesitant as he moved them to her hips.

Moving fast, Astrid got in his lap and straddled him as she deepened the kiss. When she pulled away, she muttered, “I’ve never wanted to do that before.”

“Never?” He asked, looking up at her with a mixture of confusion, pain, and lust.

She shook her head. The way his smile brightened half his face was imprinted on her memory as he said, “Me, neither.”

He lifted her up and dropped her on the bed. Astrid had her legs wrapped around him and pulled him down on top of her. The way his cool blue eyes looked down at her, the cat shifter thought she knew exactly what he was thinking.

“If you tell me this is a bad idea, I’m going to violently disagree with you.” As she said it, Astrid let her claws out just enough to dig into his back.

His eyes shone, but whatever resolve he had didn’t last. Phoenix lowered himself and began to kiss her neck. She expected that he would ask if she was sure or try to persuade her that it was a bad idea. His apparent enthusiasm was intoxicating.

She pulled at his shirt as she let her body act on its own. When his shirt was removed, she saw that Phoenix had several deep scars on his body, and she froze. He just watched as she reached up and touched the one across his chest.

“What happened?”

“My father deepened the curse when he felt we could use more power. It was after that when the Sextons’ father died.”

Astrid looked at the marks; there were more than a dozen. Several questions ran through her mind, but the cat shifter didn’t want to ask them in case it would make him stop. Instead, she pushed her hips into his and moved up to kiss down the scar. Phoenix closed his eyes and moaned, his arms flexing as he held up both his weight and hers.

“I want you,” she murmured. Then she placed a finger over his lips. “Just for tonight.”

His eyes looked darker, as if a shadow passed over them, but Phoenix nodded. He lay her down again, stripping her as he did. First, her shirt, then her bra, with a bit of help. Soon, she was naked beneath him. Slowly, he removed the rest of his clothing. Then, threading his fingers through hers, Phoenix stretched her arms over her head and moved her legs apart with his own. While kissing her neck, she leaned back to give him more access as her hips started pushing against his. Finally, he kissed her mouth, his tongue moving slowly between her lips as he moved his shaft slowly against her opening. He brushed against her, stroking her and teasing her until she pulled her mouth away and let out a frustrated groan.